With redevelopment of the Auburn Ruth Everuss Aquatic Centre requiring demolition of all existing pools and construction of entirely new structures for six pools (an outdoor 50m pool, outdoor water polo pool and shaded outdoor children's splash pad, plus an air-conditioned indoor pool, indoor family leisure pool and indoor program pool), the project presented a substantial task for NBRS Architecture and Cockram Construction.

And one which was not entirely straightforward, as adjacent smaller buildings and the outdoor grandstand were heritage buildings that needed to be retained and refurbished accordingly, requiring a deft design hand to thoughtfully link the old with the new.

However it was a project whose challenges NBRS, with their reputation for design excellence, and Cockram, a construction services company with a 156-year history of delivering prestigious projects, were both eminently positioned to meet.

Prominent among these challenges was the need to find roofing products which would not only be suitable for use in the corrosive, chlorinous environment but would also provide the required minimum 15-year warranty on products and installation.

Looking into the solution offered by the PERMALITE ALSULATE-125® insulated roofing system and PERMALITE® Waveline and PERMALITE LT7® profiles, NBRS Architecture specified the products and Cockram Construction made contact with Rob Price, Product Manager – BlueScope Building Components.

Pleasingly, Lysaght weren’t just able to offer the ideal products for the aquatic centre’s redevelopment in the marine grade aluminium PERMALITE® roofing solutions; they were also able to offer a warranty exceeding the project requirements.

Swinging into action to support the project’s successful delivery, one particular area in which Lysaght’s partnership and technical expertise proved extremely valuable was in developing a suspension system for the indoor pool areas.

“A suspended ceiling was shown on the project documentation and Lysaght was extremely helpful in providing an entirely aluminium solution, with Rob Price providing CAD drawings and design solutions for Cockram’s various proposals,” Cockram’s representative stated.

“Lysaght also conducted testing on the PERMALITE ALSULATE-125® roofing system at their NATA* accredited laboratory, to identify what loads it could support if the suspended ceiling were to be fixed directly to the panels.

“Rob Price contributed a significant amount of time and effort on this exercise, which was very useful and provided ideas for future projects, and it was decided to use a perforated PERMALITE® Waveline ceiling attached to PERMALITE® aluminium purlins.”

Overall, the corrosion-resistant PERMALITE® aluminium products, all supplied in the glistening Glacier White™ colour, provided a host of benefits.

The PERMALITE ALSULATE-125® roofing system, which combines marine grade aluminium linings with an insulating EPS core and has self-spanning capacities up to 6.4m, made the ideal choice for both the indoor pool areas and the external grandstand.

Suspended beneath this via lightweight PERMALITE® aluminium purlins in the indoor areas, the 11 per cent perforated PERMALITE® Waveline ceiling created a pleasing, classic corrugated visual while also pleasantly absorbing and reducing the noise inherent in such areas.

And, used variously for roofing the entry to the facility plus various amenities blocks on site, the PERMALITE® Waveline and PERMALITE LT7® profiles provided attractive, durable, low-maintenance roofing solutions for the chlorinous environment.

In addition to product performance, the ease of working with the Lysaght team and PERMALITE® aluminium products also ensured a pleasant experience for all involved.

“It’s aluminium, lightweight and easy to handle; even the PERMALITE ALSULATE-125® roofing system is relatively easy to lay for such a thick sheet,” explained Alan George, Operations Manager at Gartner Rose Roofing, who installed the products.

“Roofing the indoor areas was very straightforward and easy, even with three different products, and the PERMALITE ALSULATE-125® was extremely easy to handle and lay on the grandstand as the material was very high quality and held a straight line,” he said. “The Lysaght team were also delightful and extremely helpful to work with; their backup was terrific, delivery was good, everything was on time and the job went very well.”

Cockram Construction was also very pleased with both Lysaght and the PERMALITE® aluminium products, with their representative stating: “We had the convenience of locally manufactured, quality products at a comparable cost to other products on the market, proven and achievable warranties, and excellent service which met Cockram’s requirements.”

*National Association of Testing Authorities, Australia